Technical notes
Technical notes
PARTI
The initial sections of this book present a global overview of the
world of coral reefs from a biological and a human perspective.
They provide a holistic overview of reef ecology, human uses
and threats, and also the techniques of reef mapping.
PARTS ll-IV
For the purposes of this work, a number of geographic subdivisions have been used. Firstly the world is divided into
three broad realms: the Atlantic and Eastern Pacific; the
wider Indian Ocean and Southeast Asia; and the Pacific (Parts
II, II! and IV respectively!. These are then divided into regional
chapters, each of which is sub-divided into sections, linked
to particular maps. These sections do not strictly follow political boundaries - many do deal with individual countries or
territories, but others contain parts of countries, or several
countries combined.
Each section covers a range of issues, commencing with
information about the physical geography of each region or
country under consideration, followed by information on the
reefs, both in terms of structure and biodiversity Even where
little information is available, every effort has been made to
mention all the major reef features in each country, including
remote and largely unknown formations. Information about
the human utilization of the reefs follows, with information on
their protection where applicable. These texts are followed by
detailed data tables and references Isee below].
Where possible, statistics describing biodiversity, fisheries and other information have been placed in the
text. These are intended to complement the figures provided
in the data tables. They are taken from various sources and
hence are of Limited value for country comparisons. For
example, in providing biodiversity statistics, many sources
supply information on coral diversity, but without a full
definition. Rather than ignoring such statistics, the figure is
reproduced using the wording of the original source ("corals",
"hermatypic corals", "zooxanthellate corals", "hard corals",
"scleractinian corals"). Similar problems arise in numbers of
fish ("reef fish" or all fish species), and in fisheries statistics,
which often do not separate coastal from pelagic fisheries.
THE MAPS
Two mam styles of map are provided. At the start of each
chapter are low resolution regional maps which provide a
context for the more detailed maps that follow. The regional
maps show coral reefs against a background of shaded bathymetry and shaded relief on the land areas, which have been
generated using advanced GIS techniques on digital elevation
model (DEMI data (from CRSSA. 1996 and USGS, 19961. They
have been simply annotated to show the location of individual
countries and a small number of major oceanographic features if these are not shown on the high resolution maps.
The high resolution maps are linked to the sections within
each chapter All have a common key. as provided on page 12.
Apart from coral reefs, all maps also show major towns, rivers
and the distribution of forests. Offshore, simple bathymetry is
also provided, along with the distribution of mangrove forests
along the coastlines. Every effort has been made to ensure
that locations mentioned in the text are included on the maps.
The source information for coral reef data on each map is
provided at the end of each chapter It is highly important to
read this information in order to assess the accuracy,
resolution and age of the information. Two standard sources
have been used in a number of countries which are not
detailed
in
every chapter, but are provided below;
Petroconsultants SA (1990) and UNEP/IUCN (1988a, b).
Inland forest cover information is based on UNEP-WCIvtC
data holdings which, like the coral reef cover, are derived from
multiple sources. While this forest layer is probably the most
detailed and accurate global dataset available it is not complete
for all geographic areas. The definition of forest includes areas
where tree canopy is greater than 10 percent. Where forest
cover IS absent for a particular country or island this may be
due to a lack of data rather than an absence of forest cover
Ivlangrove forest information is part of the UNEP-WCMC
global forest map labovel. This layer was largely developed for
the World Mangrove Atlas (Spalding et al. 1 9971. Although this
remains probably the most accurate global coverage available.
It may be incomplete or outdated for a number of countries.
A major effort has been made to establish the location of
dive centers. For the purposes of this work, these have been
defined as any center that provides certified training. In this
atlas a new dataset has been prepared of over 2 000 dive
centers in coral reef regions.
Protected area information is taken directly from the
UNEP-WCf^C protected areas database. Within this database
all marine protected areas are highlighted and all these sites,
where their location is known, are marked on the maps. The
type or designation of protection is given as an abbreviation,
while for those protected areas containing coral reefs, the
designations are provided in full in the data tables. A marine
protected area in this context is defined by the lUCN World
Commission on Protected Areas and includes all legally
gazetted sites which incorporate at least some intertidal or
subtidal areas. 11 does not therefore include private protected
areas which do not enjoy any legal status, nor does it include
sites which are proposed, but are not yet legally established.
CRSSA 11996). GlobalARC GIS Database '96. Center for Remote
Sensing and Spatial Analysis, Cook College. Rutgers
University. New Brunswick, NJ. USA.
Petroconsultants SA (1990). fvlUNDOCART/CD. Version 2.0.
1:1 000 000 world map prepared from the Operational
Navigational Charts of the United States Defense Mapping
Agency Petroconsultants ICES) Ltd, London, UK.
Spalding |vlD, Blasco F, Field CD (1997). World Mangrove Atlas.
The International Society for fvlangrove Ecosystems.
Okinawa, Japan.
UNEP/IUCN 11988a). Coral Reefs of tf)e World. Volume 1:
Atlantic and Eastern Pacific. UNEP Regional Seas
Directories and Bibliographies. UNEP and lUCN, Nairobi,
Kenya. Gland. Switzerland and Cambridge, UK.
UNEP/IUCN I1988bl. Coral Reefs of ttie World. Volume 2:
Indian Ocean. UNEP Regional Seas Directories and
Bibliographies. UNEP and lUCN, Nairobi, Kenya, Gland,
Switzerland and Cambridge, UK.
USGS 11996). GTOP030. US Geological Survey EROS Data
Center, Sioux Falls, SD, USA.
Technical notes
PARTI
The initial sections of this book present a global overview of the
world of coral reefs from a biological and a human perspective.
They provide a holistic overview of reef ecology, human uses
and threats, and also the techniques of reef mapping.
PARTS ll-IV
For the purposes of this work, a number of geographic subdivisions have been used. Firstly the world is divided into
three broad realms: the Atlantic and Eastern Pacific; the
wider Indian Ocean and Southeast Asia; and the Pacific (Parts
II, II! and IV respectively!. These are then divided into regional
chapters, each of which is sub-divided into sections, linked
to particular maps. These sections do not strictly follow political boundaries - many do deal with individual countries or
territories, but others contain parts of countries, or several
countries combined.
Each section covers a range of issues, commencing with
information about the physical geography of each region or
country under consideration, followed by information on the
reefs, both in terms of structure and biodiversity Even where
little information is available, every effort has been made to
mention all the major reef features in each country, including
remote and largely unknown formations. Information about
the human utilization of the reefs follows, with information on
their protection where applicable. These texts are followed by
detailed data tables and references Isee below].
Where possible, statistics describing biodiversity, fisheries and other information have been placed in the
text. These are intended to complement the figures provided
in the data tables. They are taken from various sources and
hence are of Limited value for country comparisons. For
example, in providing biodiversity statistics, many sources
supply information on coral diversity, but without a full
definition. Rather than ignoring such statistics, the figure is
reproduced using the wording of the original source ("corals",
"hermatypic corals", "zooxanthellate corals", "hard corals",
"scleractinian corals"). Similar problems arise in numbers of
fish ("reef fish" or all fish species), and in fisheries statistics,
which often do not separate coastal from pelagic fisheries.
THE MAPS
Two mam styles of map are provided. At the start of each
chapter are low resolution regional maps which provide a
context for the more detailed maps that follow. The regional
maps show coral reefs against a background of shaded bathymetry and shaded relief on the land areas, which have been
generated using advanced GIS techniques on digital elevation
model (DEMI data (from CRSSA. 1996 and USGS, 19961. They
have been simply annotated to show the location of individual
countries and a small number of major oceanographic features if these are not shown on the high resolution maps.
The high resolution maps are linked to the sections within
each chapter All have a common key. as provided on page 12.
Apart from coral reefs, all maps also show major towns, rivers
and the distribution of forests. Offshore, simple bathymetry is
also provided, along with the distribution of mangrove forests
along the coastlines. Every effort has been made to ensure
that locations mentioned in the text are included on the maps.
The source information for coral reef data on each map is
provided at the end of each chapter It is highly important to
read this information in order to assess the accuracy,
resolution and age of the information. Two standard sources
have been used in a number of countries which are not
detailed
in
every chapter, but are provided below;
Petroconsultants SA (1990) and UNEP/IUCN (1988a, b).
Inland forest cover information is based on UNEP-WCIvtC
data holdings which, like the coral reef cover, are derived from
multiple sources. While this forest layer is probably the most
detailed and accurate global dataset available it is not complete
for all geographic areas. The definition of forest includes areas
where tree canopy is greater than 10 percent. Where forest
cover IS absent for a particular country or island this may be
due to a lack of data rather than an absence of forest cover
Ivlangrove forest information is part of the UNEP-WCMC
global forest map labovel. This layer was largely developed for
the World Mangrove Atlas (Spalding et al. 1 9971. Although this
remains probably the most accurate global coverage available.
It may be incomplete or outdated for a number of countries.
A major effort has been made to establish the location of
dive centers. For the purposes of this work, these have been
defined as any center that provides certified training. In this
atlas a new dataset has been prepared of over 2 000 dive
centers in coral reef regions.
Protected area information is taken directly from the
UNEP-WCf^C protected areas database. Within this database
all marine protected areas are highlighted and all these sites,
where their location is known, are marked on the maps. The
type or designation of protection is given as an abbreviation,
while for those protected areas containing coral reefs, the
designations are provided in full in the data tables. A marine
protected area in this context is defined by the lUCN World
Commission on Protected Areas and includes all legally
gazetted sites which incorporate at least some intertidal or
subtidal areas. 11 does not therefore include private protected
areas which do not enjoy any legal status, nor does it include
sites which are proposed, but are not yet legally established.
CRSSA 11996). GlobalARC GIS Database '96. Center for Remote
Sensing and Spatial Analysis, Cook College. Rutgers
University. New Brunswick, NJ. USA.
Petroconsultants SA (1990). fvlUNDOCART/CD. Version 2.0.
1:1 000 000 world map prepared from the Operational
Navigational Charts of the United States Defense Mapping
Agency Petroconsultants ICES) Ltd, London, UK.
Spalding |vlD, Blasco F, Field CD (1997). World Mangrove Atlas.
The International Society for fvlangrove Ecosystems.
Okinawa, Japan.
UNEP/IUCN 11988a). Coral Reefs of tf)e World. Volume 1:
Atlantic and Eastern Pacific. UNEP Regional Seas
Directories and Bibliographies. UNEP and lUCN, Nairobi,
Kenya. Gland. Switzerland and Cambridge, UK.
UNEP/IUCN I1988bl. Coral Reefs of ttie World. Volume 2:
Indian Ocean. UNEP Regional Seas Directories and
Bibliographies. UNEP and lUCN, Nairobi, Kenya, Gland,
Switzerland and Cambridge, UK.
USGS 11996). GTOP030. US Geological Survey EROS Data
Center, Sioux Falls, SD, USA.